young kitten questions

well I found my new kitten, but I fell for one a bit younger then I was planning. At the moment she is 8 weeks old. So I was hoping I could get alittle help with the basics.

She is very playful. She has a cold but keeps jumping all over me and biting/playing with my hands. She doesn't seem to stop purring (aside from the times she saw the dog and the cat). I'm not sure if she is happy, looking for comfort, or looking for her mother. As much as I would love to think shes happy, I think it has more to do with the cold, or looking for her mother.

What behavior should I try and correct and what is o.k.? I'm pretty sure the bitting of the hands is bad, even though it doesn't hurt. With Mai Sai I would only try to correct him if it hurt, but he was 5-7 months old. Is there anything else I should know?

I can't help you with anything else, I'm having the same issues right now, but as far as the purring, I think all kittens do that when they are around people. Jake starts to purr as soon as someone enters the room. He purrs at all times except for when he is playing and reallly concentrated in that lol...

Where did you get her from?
She is really to young to away from her mom.
I would go to the vet for the cold.

Originally Posted by mews2much

Where did you get her from?
She is really to young to away from her mom.
I would go to the vet for the cold.

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I got her from the shelter. She was found on the side of the road with a really bad eye problem, they have been giving her alot of meds to help with it and now its almost gone. I am taking her to the vet though, as soon as he can fit us in.

You'll notice that cats purr when they are content, sick and in pain.
It was believed for a long time that cats purred when they were happy, but that doesn't explain why they would purr when they're sick or in pain.

I read recently that there is a university study going on right now to test whether cats purr at a frequency that helps their bodies heal. Which would explain why cats heal quicker than dogs and other animals.

I firmly believe this is the case. It makes the most sense.

Originally Posted by CatKingCole

I read recently that there is a university study going on right now to test whether cats purr at a frequency that helps their bodies heal. Which would explain why cats heal quicker than dogs and other animals.

I firmly believe this is the case. It makes the most sense.

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Then why would they purr also when they are content? I read that they also purr when they are really frightened to show that they are not about to attack..
I also read that when the cat gets older that is when the meaning of purring changes and they may purr when they are terminally ill -it's just like when some humans know they are going to die they become euphoric..or if they are very ill they purr just like we hum to ourselves to make us feel better sometimes even in times of extreme distress...

Congratulations on your new baby!! When we adopted Hannah, we were looking for a cat about 2-5 years of old, but ended up falling in love with a 7-month old, so I know a little of what you're going through.

I'd definitely discourage playing with hands/feet and the biting. I do what one of the previous posters mentioned, a firm "NO!" (not screaming, but firmly), and a tap on the nose, or even just your pointer finger on their forehead. Most importantly is for your kitty to continue to get well and continue to play, play, play! They're such fun when they're tiny!!

You may also want to post over on the kitten forum for more ideas and help.

I wish you good luck. We could not break Jack of the biting habit--the best technique here was biting back (I don't think I'd suggest it for an 8 week old)--there is a thread on it somewhere. Our best results came from--cat #2. I rarely get bitten anymore and Harley is able to fight back in a way I can't. His hissing and biting will always be more effective than mine!

Leslie